Active for Life - December 2024

In this issue:

CEO Michael Carr's message

Reflecting back

2024 Taranaki Sports Awards
Play in the Park
Raising Resilience with Kathryn Berkett
A Morning with Harko Brown
Healthy Active Learning Term 4 Workshop - Energising Education
Healthy Active Learning Cross Country with Waitara Central
Christmas Food Bank Drive

Looking ahead

Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa Opens Again January 2025
2025 TET Taranaki Masters Games - April 2-6.
Workshop for Educators: Science of Learning: Lane Clark April 15-16
Christmas shutdown

Resources and links

Taranaki Facilities Consortium
Gymnastics Waitara: Case Study
Staff spotlight
Quick links to resources

Kia ora koutou,

I’m happy to share the latest Sport Taranaki news from across the region.

The Taranaki Sports Awards were a huge success with athletes, coaches, game officials, volunteers and community impact being celebrated and recognised. Olympic gold medalist Michaela Blyde claimed the supreme and the senior sportswoman awards. The calibre of nominees and winners this year was incredibly high.

It’s been a busy few months for our team with Play in the Park events, hosting community workshops with Kathryn Berkett and Harko Brown, as well joining our Healthy Active Learning team with a focus on Energising Education.

We are also excited to confirm the TET Taranaki Masters Games will return in 2025 between 2-6 April. Planning is well underway with sports signing up so keep an eye out for more details early next year.

Our office will be closed from midday 20 December to 13 January.

I wish everyone a happy, safe and active time through this holiday season.

Ngā mihi nui

Michael Carr

CEO Sport Taranaki

Sports Awards Results

Awards: Blyde claims supreme, sportswomen awards

Will Johnston - Sports News Taranaki Back-to-back Olympic gold medallist Michaela Blyde has claimed the Taranaki...

Play in the Park

Play in the park returned for 2024 in Hawera and New Plymouth with plenty of ways to get moving with play by discovering rocks hidden along trails and trees as well as getting creative!

We teamed up with Trails and Tots to get outdoors with nature rogaine and other ways to get creative for tamariki to paint and immerse themselves in nature art.

There was plenty of family fun including replay gear and interactive games with Improv Taranaki.

Thanks to Turners & Growers for providing healthy snacks.

Raising Resilience with Kathryn Berkett

This community event was extremely well attended, with many parents and educators gaining an understanding of what resilience truly means. A neuroscience expert, Kathryn shared insights into how the brain responds to stress, and how bouncing back from challenges helps build resilience in ourselves and those around us. Physical activity is a great platform for developing lifelong skills such as resilience. One participant shared “I learnt how to recognise when students are in the ‘red brain’, this is a key for me, as well as knowing how to respond."

A Morning with Harko Brown

We were privileged to host a workshop with cultural educator Harko Brown, that was attended by local educators, youth workers, and Sport Taranaki staff.

Participants explored the concept of Ira Tākaro (the innate desire for play) and learned about the whakapapa, tikanga and protocols of a variety of Māori of games and activities.

Jasmin, our Active Recreation advisor said it was an energising morning for all.

"A big thank you to all of the educators and youth workers that attended, and to Harko Brown for sharing his mātauranga with us. It was an awesome workshop filled with practical take always to enhance our mahi."

Healthy Active Learning Term 4 Workshop - Energising Education

The Healthy Active Learning team hosted a workshop for our Principals and Leads with special guest presenters; Lane Clark, Kathryn Berkett and Harko Brown. We delved into how our brains learn, the conditions needed for learning and the power of learning through culturally responsive, fun and engaging movement activities. All attendees came away with a deeper understanding of neuroscience and Mātauranga Māori, commenting that their key learnings were around "using effective pedagogy to enhance students learning", "consolidating knowledge of cognitive load theory", "learning through doing - Te Ao Maori Games" and "increased awareness of neuro info - it impacts our behaviours, resilience and coping".

Taranaki Facilities Consortium

“Facing a facility challenge or planning a project? The Taranaki Facilites Consortium are here to help!

As the regional mechanism to review facility challenges and projects, the TFC are available to support clubs, groups and organisations facing facility challenges and planning facility projects. Projects working with the TFC will benefit from free practical and strategic advice and will be ‘on the radar’ of potential funders.

For more information head to www.tfc.net.nz or connect directly via admin@tfc.net.nz

Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa Fund

Workshop for educators

Unpacking Explicit Instruction and the Science of Learning: Lane Clark

Lane Clark is an internationally recognised educator, author and speaker. She has a well-earned reputation as an expert in powerful pedagogy and in the design and delivery of engaging curriculum. Lane is a valued advocate for Healthy Active Learning and Sport Taranaki and we have had the privilege of having her as a presenter in our workshops this year with school leads and principals. Her authentic, transdisciplinary approach to learning is founded on wellbeing and teaching students how to learn and how to think.

Lane is coming to New Plymouth next year to provide a two-day workshop for educators to unpack the research on explicit instruction and the Science of Learning, making it accessible, practical and instantly usable for educators.

DATES: Tuesday 15th - Wednesday 16th April 2025

TIMES: 9am to 3.30pm each day

COST: $595 NZ pp [discounts for group bookings of 5 or more]

Morning tea, lunch and refreshments provided

Email office@laneclark.ca to register or to enquire about Lane working with your staff.

Gymnastics Waitara is a well-established Gymnastics Facility with over 300 regular participants. The club provide programs and opportunities for all ages and stages. Programs range from ninja and parkour classes to competitive gymnastics and everything in between, including all abilities classes and opportunities for preschoolers. Having serviced the North Taranaki district for over 30 years, Gymnastics Waitara’s mission is to create a safe, positive environment that challenges every participant regardless of their ability level. Located within the North Taranaki Sport & Recreation complex on Princess Street, Waitara, the facility is across the road from Waitara High School and nearby to three primary schools.

Read more by clicking on the case study below.

Gymnastics Waitara: Case Study

Jay Wilkinson

Māori Lead

Jay joined our team in October as our Māori Lead. He was drawn to be part of an inclusive organisation where the mahi contributes to the increased participation of Māori in Play, Sport and Active Recreation.

Jay is involved in coaching and mentoring programmes and is a strong supporter of men’s mental health with connections with Matt Brown (of She Is Not Your Rehab).

At present he is providing mentoring support for four young men, two in Hāwera and two in Ngāmotu, he has recently been appointed as a local coach of Clifton RFC. He is in the national team setup with the New Zealand U18s Māori Rugby programme. Jay holds one Board position on the Araukuku land trust in Hāwera and a Committee of Management position within Parininihi ki Waitotara (PKW).

Jay spends most of his spare time training rugby players through the evenings in Waitara, cooking American BBQ and loves time at home in the garden or out drinking coffee with his wife Chloe. You might also see Jay out and about with his 10-year-old son William, or on his regular beach walks with his dogs.

Contact: jay.wilkinson@sporttaranaki.org.nz